On those that offend and are offended pt 8

“It is impossible,” you say, “for me to love my enemies, and to do good to them.”  Not true.  It was possible for David, who wept for his enemies, Saul and Abessalom [Absalom] who perished (II Kings [II Samuel] chh. 1 and 18).  For mourning over the destruction of enemies is a manifest sign of love for enemies.  It was possible for St. Stephen, who prayed for his enemies who stoned him, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge, (Acts 7:60).  It was possible for all the saints.  Then it is also possible for you.  You are a man, and they were men.  You are weak, and they had the same weakness. 

When children learn to read books, they first learn the letters, then spelling, and later on they learn to read.  Christians should proceed in the same way in Christian doctrine.  First of all, they should learn to return good for good, which is gratitude; then not to return evil for evil, insult for insult, offense for offense, and not to take revenge either in word or in deed on the offender; and then after this, even to love their enemies and to do good to those that hate them, and to return good for evil. 

This is the ladder by which Christians ascend toward perfection, that is toward love of enemies.  What, then, Christian?  When you are commanded to love your enemies, and to do good to those that hate you—commanded by Him Who created you and redeemed the lost by His blood and death, and Who holds your death and life in His hand—will you consent and forgive him who offended you?  If an earthly king had commanded you not only to forgive your neighbor his offense, but also to serve him, or else be put to death, which had you better choose?  To die or to forgive and serve your neighbor?  I hope that you would rather wish to forgive and serve your neighbor than to die.  The Heavenly King commands you not only to forgive him that offended you, but also to love your enemies, and to do good to those that hate you.  Otherwise eternal death will follow those that do not hear the commandment of the Heavenly King.  Not everyone that saith unto Me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the Kingdom of Heaven, but he that doeth the will of My Father which is in heaven, (Matthew :21)  THE END

 

 

 

On those that offend and are offended pt 7



 

Beloved Christians!  We speak here of a serious matter, in which consists either eternal salvation or eternal destruction.  We speak of the forgiveness of sins, for which we sigh to God daily.  But sighing, and even tears, are useless to us if we do not forgive our neighbors their transgressions, for therein are hidden the wickedness and unrighteousness of the human heart. 
 

A man wishes to receive mercy of God, but he does not wish to show mercy to someone like himself.  He wishes God to forgive him his sins, but he himself does not wish to forgive.  You see how wicked and unrighteous is such a man’s heart. 
 

Our Lord told us, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you, (Matt 5:44),   
 

It is not enough for a Christian to love those that love him, for even the heathen do this, who do not know the true God, and do not accept Christ.  As the Lord says, For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye?  Do not even the publicans the same?  And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others?  Do not even publicans so? (Matt 5:46-47).  Christians must surpass pagans in love and excellence and show perfection in themselves.  Because Christians are begotten through holy Baptism and renewed unto life eternal and a holy life, they must therefore love not only their friends but also their enemies. 
 

For thereby is a true Christian soul known, and this is also what the Heavenly Father does, for He maketh His sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust, (Matt 5:45).  Christians should imitate Him as children do their father, according to the exhortation of the Apostle, Be ye followers of God, as dear children (Ephesians 5:1).  (to be continued)

 



On those that offend and are offended pt 6

 

True, it is hard to suffer evil for good.  But who does us more good than God?  Nevertheless, disregarding this we continually sin against Him.  Then look at this, cover your face and say from the heart, “I have sinned, O Lord, have mercy on me.  I forgive my neighbor, forgive also me, Thine unworthy servant who have sinned against Thee, my creator and benefactor.”

“I was very patient with him,” you say.  Remember how much you have sinned against God, but the Lord was patient with you.  How would it have been had God dealt with you according to His righteousness?  Your soul would have gone down to hell a long time ago.  Then just as God was long-suffering with you, and dealt with you according to His mercy, so should you do also to your neighbor. 

“I know,” you say, “that God deals mercifully with us.  I am a weak man, and I cannot do likewise.”  It is not that you cannot, but that you will not. You cannot walk on water, but what is the difficulty of forgiving?  What then do you wish?  To execute your wrath and get revenge on your neighbor?  That is not weakness, but malice.  But remember that it is commanded of Christians, Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children, (Ephesians 5:1).  “If,” you say, “I forgive him, then he will do me more evil.”  You do not know this.  But even if he does you evil, let him do what he will.  You should do what is yours, what is commanded of you and necessary for your salvation.  If he will not correct himself, he shall receive according to his deeds.  He that is unjust, let him be unjust still (Apocalypse 22:11).  “He,” you say, “has grievously offended me.”   There can be no more grievous an offense than that done to Christ your Savior, Whom they not only blasphemed, reviled, mocked, spat upon, derided, struck, and bound, but they even crowned Him with a crown of thorns, and nailed Him to the Cross, and as they passed by they cursed Him Who was nailed, and they put Him to death.  Whom?  The Son of God and the Lord of Glory.  What are you next to so great a Person, and what is your offense next to His?  As nothing. 

 

 

No one spits on you, no one even strikes you, no one crowns you with thorns, and the rest.  Christ the Lord endured all these things with great meekness and long-suffering.  For whom?  For me and for you, His unworthy servants.  And not only did He endure all this, but He also prayed for His enemies, Father, forgive them, (Luke 23:34).  Look on this patience as in a mirror and consider, and you will no doubt forgive your neighbor.  “If,” you say, “I should forgive, then people will mock me.” 

To the impious and lovers of this world the Christian life and the morality of the Gospel is a scandal and foolishness, but it is wisdom before God.  You should do what the Gospel teaches and not as people say.  Let the mockers mock, but afterward they will weep bitterly, and already too late, for their conscience itself will reprove them.  (to be continued)

On those that offend and are offended pt 5

Do we forgive our neighbors their trespasses?  God also forgives us in His mercy.  Do we refuse to forgive?  God, too, will refuse to forgive us.  As we treat our neighbors, so also does God treat us.  The forgiveness, then, of your sins or un-forgiveness, and hence also your salvation or destruction, depend on you yourself, man.  For without forgiveness of sins there is no salvation.  You can see for yourself how terrible it is. 

“Should I forgive him,” you say, “since he knows who I am and who he is?”  Both he and you, poor man, the exalted and the lowly, are all equally sinners.  But do you yourself know who you are, and Who God is against Whom you have sinned and yet sin still?  All the world is as nothing before God (cf. Isaiah chapter 40), before Whom you have sinned and yet sin still.  If all the world is as nothing before God what, then, are you alone, however great and high you may be before men?  So great and infinite is God, against Whom you have sinned and yet sin still.  What, then, are your sins, O man, before God?  And what is the sin of your neighbor who offended you?  It is as a farthing against many thousands of pieces of gold, it is as a penny against ten thousand talents.  Or, even better, say, it is as nothing against your sins toward God. 

Painting by Harold Copping

You do not wish to forgive a small, even a very small, thing.  Do you yet hope to receive forgiveness for a great thing?  You, a man, do not forgive a man, nor do you, a sinner, forgive a sinner.  Will you be forgiven by God, Who is eternal justice and incomprehensible majesty?  You, a like man, do not have mercy on a like man.  Yet what mercy do you expect of God?  See how dangerous it is not to forgive your neighbor his transgressions!  “I am in no way at fault before him,” you say.  “He offended me without cause.”   

It genuinely happens that people offend us for no reason, but wherein is God at fault with us?  God is just and there is no injustice in Him.  To Thee belongeth truth, O Lord, but to us belongeth confusion of face, (cf. Daniel 9:8).  Nevertheless we sin against Him irrationally and without shame, and so we offend Him, and we repent and beg mercy and receive mercy.  Glory to His love for man!  Glory to His immeasurable graciousness. 

Then as you wish to obtain forgiveness of God, you yourself should also forgive him who has sinned against you.  You are blameless before him of nothing, as you say; nevertheless perhaps you are also at fault; for it is difficult for those living in society not to offend each other somehow.  We sin against one another; we should also forgive one another.  “I did him good,” you say, “but he returned me evil for good.”  (to be continued) 

On those that offend and are offended pt 4

He that is offended must forgive the offender, so that he himself may be forgiven by God and that he may pray with hope, Father, forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors…For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your Heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses (Matt 6:12, 14-15), says the Lord. 

You see, Christian, how terrible it is not to forgive your neighbor’s trespasses!  If you forgive a man his trespasses, then God will also forgive you.  If you do not forgive, then God will also not forgive you.  How, then do you stand before God? And how much, then is your prayer worth?  Almost nothing.  When you become angry with your neighbor, you yourself will also be found in wrath before God.  But this great calamity of yours comes from you yourself, since you are angry and will not forgive your neighbor his transgressions. 

True, he has sinned against you, but you have sinned and yet still sin against God.  He is your debtor, but you are God’s debtor.  He begs forgiveness of you, but you beg forgiveness of God, you pray to God, Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors (Matt 6:12).  If you forgive your neighbor from your heart, then you will pray from the heart and you will say these words to God truly and un-hypocritically.  If you do not forgive your neighbor from your heart, then you will pray only with words and with your lips, and therefore hypocritically, and so your prayer will not only not benefit you, but it becomes sin.  Do you see where wrath and enmity lead a man?  Then conquer yourself, beloved, set aside your anger and forgive your neighbor everything, then you will pray sincerely and un-hypocritically, Father, forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors (Matt 6:12), and you will be granted forgiveness of your debts.  For the word of God is faithful, true and not false; whatever it says, it is just as it says, and what it promises it fulfils, and what it threatens us comes to pass if we do not repent.  (to be continued)

 

 

On those that offend and are offended pt 3

 

 

“Shall I beg forgiveness of him?” you say, “I am well-born, and he is a base man.”  But he, too, is a man, as you are.  

To God, the just Judge, both the noble man and the lowly are equal.  He forbade the well-born to offend the lowly, as well as the lowly the noble, and both the well-born and the lowly shall stand before His just Judgment.  

But look at the graves of your ancestors and there you will see your nobility.  “But he is an evil man,” you say  It is not for you to judge him.  It is also not known who is better, you or he, for God judges according to the inward and not the outward disposition.  The Lord examineth the righteous man and the ungodly (Psalm 10:5).  

Likewise, you do not know how you and he shall end.  Many begin well but come to an evil end, others begin ill but end well.  It is not the good beginning but the good end that is worthy or praise and accomplishes all things.  “He will not,” you say, “ask me, though I should ask his forgiveness.” 
 

No, humility has such power that it inclines even the hard of heart.  For God, the lover of humility, works through the humble.  You just humble yourself before him and you shall see the power of humility.  He will unfailingly embrace you with love and joy, and kiss you.  But if you do not do more than what is expected you will already be responsible for your misfortune.  “But he will become conceited at my humility,” you say.  

Not true.  When he sees your humility, he will also humble himself.  But if he should be conceited, then he shall unfailingly be humbled, according to the word of the Lord, Every one that exalteth himself shall be abased (Luke 18:14).  But cease all your excuses, let him do what he wishes.  You should do what is needful and profitable to you and what is commanded by the Lord.  (to be continued)

On those that offend and are offended pt 2

 

Look, Christian, how necessarily we must be reconciled with our neighbor.  God will accept neither our repentance, nor prayers, nor anything else from us as long as we have not been reconciled with our neighbor, so dear does God hold love and peace with our neighbor. 

Then keep from neglecting reconciliation when you have offended your neighbor, but be reconciled to him without delay, lest you fall under the righteous wrath of God.  If you have offended him in word, also be reconciled in word.  Humble yourself before him and beg forgiveness of him.  If you have offended him in deed, also be reconciled in deed.  Death stalks invisibly behind us and seizes us unawares.  What, then, will become of a man if he is taken without reconciliation and in enmity?  He shall appear before the judgment of Christ with what he takes from this world.  What is forgiven and made up now will not appear there. 

Then be reconciled with your adversary, beloved, while you are yet in the way.  Attend to it for this reason, Christian:  you were able to offend your brother, then you should also be able to be reconciled with him.  But neither delay in so important a matter, nor set it aside for tomorrow, for you do not know whether you will live until the next day.  God promised His mercy to us who repent, but He did not promise us tomorrow’s day.  Then convince yourself, and break down the idol of pride which is in your heart, and bow down with humility before your neighbor whom you have offended.  And when you bow down in body, also bow down in heart.  When you beg forgiveness with your lips, also beg with your heart.  When you repent with your tongue, repent and be sorry for it in your heart.  When you kiss each other with your lips, also kiss each other in your heart.  For the outward without the inward is nothing, for God judges according to the inward disposition.  (to be continued)